Inuyasha's Twin Brother
by Takahashi Yasha
Summary: He endured, persevered, went through it all just to see his brother again. After so many years of agony, he lost everything. He hadn't a happy moment to share. To him, fate only favoured those that helped themselves. But through the help of those around him, he will soon realize that fate can be generous, too, and he will gain it all back. He is Inumaru, the twin of Inuyasha.
1. The Boy That Fate Abandoned

Yeah I rewrote it again.

I noticed a lot of really bad mistakes in the character's personality and the character development, so I decided to take it slow. Hence, this rewrite. The first few might be the same but it changes later on. Rated M for language, slight sexual themes and gore.

~The Boy That Fate Abandoned~

Another day, another battle. They might as well have been hailed as legends with all the noisy battles they fought and the demons they exorcise. They were hard, yes, but they got through it together with the help of Shippo's interventions, Miroku's black hole, Sango and Kirara's joined forces, the power of Kagome's arrows and Inuyasha's Tetsusaiga. Even with all their power, they still couldn't suppress Naraku, their mortal enemy who was in hiding. Despite that major obstacle they were facing, they will continue to find him.

But first, they had a task to complete.

"Over here!" Inuyasha attracted the attention of their prey with a battle cry, swinging Tetsusaiga down to cut her into two. He didn't really expect it to be easy, and it indeed wasn't. His enemy slithered away from Tetsusaiga's blade and it blew a ball of fire from its mouth. Inuyasha cut through it with ease. He wasn't bothered by the fire, but he was more focused on his friends' safety.

"Move away!" Inuyasha heeded to Sango's words and shifted his weight to the left to let his demon slayer friend pass. Sango stood on Kirara with great balance and threw her Hiraikotsu, but the serpent smacked it away with her huge tail and hissed angrily. How dare these mortals interrupt her hunt?!

Hiraikotsu lodged into a boulder and the serpent breathed fire onto it, melting the weapon. Sango had to retrieve it, but the serpent was not about to let her enemy retrieve their weapon. She charged another mouthful of fire in her only to be cut off by an abrupt source of suction that she soon found herself being pulled into. She turned to Miroku and hissed, tail wrapping around Sango and holding her as hostage.

Miroku had no choice but to close the Wind Tunnel. But the serpent's actions were in vain, for her tail was quickly shot off by a bright and pure arrow that caused great pain. She screeched in agony and immediately turned her attention to Kagome, who drew another arrow and showed no fear.

The serpent hissed again and it charged towards Kagome. She bared her teeth, ready to bite down. It happened so fast that Kagome did not see it coming, but she was saved by an enormous spinning top that popped up on the serpent's head and smashed it to the ground. Shippo leapt towards Kagome and brought her to safety before his Smashing Top's effect stopped.

"Inuyasha, do your thing!" Shippo shouted as he retrieved his toy top. Inuyasha came to finish the job. "Wind Scar!" he cried out, and the serpent vanquished in the blow, leaving no trace of flesh or blood. Sango pulled her poor burnt and battered Hiraikotsu from the rocks. She got a bit sentimental about it, but she knew that it could be repaired. "Ugh, that looks terrible." Shippo commented with his nose scrunched up.

"It can be fixed." Sango reassured with a sad smile. Her village was just nearby. Miroku slung his arm around Sango's shoulder and patted her back reassuringly, but his hand snaked down a little too low for Sango's liking and it earned him a hit on the head and a sigh of disappoint from each of his friends.

"How long is such damage gonna take to fix, though?" Inuyasha asked, now a bit worried that it will take a very long time. "About three days, I guess?" Sango assumed as she examined the damage. She caught Inuyasha's disappointed look from the corner of her eyes. "You can wait for three days, Inuyasha." Sango sighed, shooting Inuyasha a look.

Inuyasha pursed his lips, having nothing to say. "Well, I guess we'll wait for you at the village." Miroku suggested, having no problem with Sango leaving. "After all, we still have to collect our reward."

His friends agreed. Sango could say that she was a little bothered by Miroku's possible intentions to flirt with the village ladies, so she requested for Shippo to look out for her. Miroku overheard her request. He'll have to be extra stealthy. Sango left for her village, bidding her friends goodbye.

xXxX

"Hopefully I still have a few materials to patch up Hiraikotsu." Sango hoped, digging amongst the various sheds in the village. Strangely, she couldn't find a lot. There was usually a lot of materials lying around untouched, but this time they were mostly gone. It was a head scratcher for Sango. "Hey, do you guys know where all the spare bones went?" Sango asked her friends. She got "Dunno." and a couple of shrugs. Sango was a bit agitated. Who could have stolen the demons bones? If it were in human hands, it would be a disaster for them.

Nevertheless, Sango managed to find enough resources to fix Hiraikotsu. While she got to work, Kirara sat at the graves of her deceased friends. Kirara whined sadly, reminiscing her memories with the other demon slayers. They were like family to her, but now they were gone. She knows that Sango is still torn up about Kohaku, but he can be saved. She was sure of it.

Suddenly, something caught her eye. She stood and hissed with her fur standing. She looked warily around the village, growling. She heard footsteps and saw a figure pass by, but she wasn't so sure about it. Kirara looked around a bit more. There was no one else in the village. With her body at ease, she went to check on Sango, pushing aside her suspicion.

xXxX

In the village, Miroku read the palms of young women despite Shippo watching him. He thought that it will be worth it, and, since he's not doing anything perverted, Sango really has nothing to complain about it. "I see in your future that you will be healthy and will bear lots of children."

The young woman giggled and playfully pinched Miroku's cheeks, squealing a small bit. "Oh, monk," she said with a bashful smile, "don't make me blush like that! I know your intentions!"

Okay, maybe it was a bit perverted in some way.

Kagome stood behind Miroku with a disappointed look. Really, will this monk never stop flirting? It was really wrong of him, honestly. Moreover, it will hurt Sango's feelings! While Miroku read another's palm, Kagome urged Inuyasha to stop the monk. Inuyasha complied. He stopped Miroku by taking a step on the monk's head. "You're getting ahead of yourself here, aren't you?" Shippo muttered.

The ladies left with happy faces and a few things to laugh about. Miroku pushed Inuyasha's foot off and stood steadily, dusting himself. "Now, don't make rash assumptions." he said with a fake sincere smile, "I am simply helping these young women to read their future and fortunes."

"Baloney." Inuyasha spat, finding it hard to believe his friend. Miroku waved his hand in dismissal and went off to find another victim he could try his luck on. "Inuyasha, could you stop him?" Kagome asked in a sweet and innocent voice. Inuyasha stared at her with a questioning look, but he complied to Kagome's request and chased after the monk.

xXxX

Sango worked hard in fixing Hiraikotsu. She already mastered mending her weapon but mending a burnt one is by far harder. Kirara watched her human restore Hiraikotsu to its original state, and even helped to get any materials needed to fix it. She couldn't help but feel a bit suspicious of the disappearance of the demon bones. Just where have they gone?

Clank! The sound of bones dropping rang through the air and caught Sango's attention. Sango dropped her tools with a gasp and rushed towards the sound. There was an intruder! A figure ran past the demolished houses and headed for the exit, but Sango wasn't gonna let the intruder pass. The figure was revealed to be a human wearing a hood over his head and he was holding a chained-sickle in his hand. He had used the boned to make a weapon!

'Is he a demon slayer as well?" Kirara transformed into her big cat form and Sango hopped onto her. They gave chase to the man, hoping to stop him.

xXxX

"A demon that looked like Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha's ears perked up. The conversation with this old man caught his interest. His glare loomed over the old man, unnerving him. "Someone who looks like me, you say?"

"Y-yes." came the reply, "But he had differences. He had an eye that was as blue as the sky, his left eye looked like it was gouged out and he had short and uneven silver hair." Inuyasha lost his interest. It didn't sound like the guy they were looking for actually resembled him. "Well, tough luck." he said, "I don't know anyone like that."

"He never asked if we knew someone like that." Kagome pointed out, "He asked if we could catch him. As he said, the guy had robbed their village."

Inuyasha dropped dead silent. Indeed, the old man never asked if they knew a guy that fit the description. But he stayed quiet about it. He scoffed and looked away, walking off angrily like a child that lost an argument. His friends couldn't make out what was wrong with him.

"Inuyasha!"

Said person turned to the direction of Sango's voice. Just above him, Kirara was hovering over the village with Sango on her back. The rest of Sango's shouting were incomprehensible, but she was pointing to something on the ground. The stranger had ran into the village and was slashing away in front of him, getting the villagers to move away in terror and clearing a path for him, too.

Inuyasha did not like the hooded figure already. He knew that this was the man Sango was chasing, and he will take him down. He charged towards the man, who saw Inuyasha coming. Instead of hacking away with his sickle, he stopped. This allowed Inuyasha to easily knock him down and tackle him to the ground, pinning him to the dirt.

In response to self-defense, the lifted the chained-sickle and brought it to Inuyasha's skull. Inuyasha was quick and smacked away the weapon before he had his head stabbed through. "Nice try!" Inuyasha growled, "Now tell me, who are you?!"

The intruder shielded his face with his hands, giving Inuyasha no idea of who this person was. Inuyasha could smell the stench that the stranger emitted, probably because he hasn't bathed in a while. But under that putrid smell was another scent that Inuyasha found familiar. He thought about it, and when he had it figured out, his eyes went wide.

"Inumaru?"

He grabbed the stranger's arm and pinned both hands above the stranger's head. The hood fell, shockingly revealing a boy that could have been a carbon copy of Inuyasha as a human if it wasn't for the missing left eye. There was a small fang that he wore around his neck like a necklace.

"It is him!" the old man shouted, "He is the man that ransacked village! He must have morphed his appearance!"

"Oh my god..." Inuyasha released the boy's, but did not get off. "Inumaru, is it you?"

"Piss off!" the boy snarled, lunging his head forward to bite. Inuyasha said something to reassure him, but the boy spat at Inuyasha before he could get a word out. With an infuriated sigh, Inuyasha wiped away the spit on his face and muttered "This is definitely Inumaru."

"He looks like you, Inuyasha." Kagome stated, still quite shocked. Inuyasha nodded. "Of course he does." Inuyasha said, "He is, after all, my twin."

"Twin?!" his friends cried out in unison and shock. They asked why Inumaru was human, and Inuyasha explained with "He becomes human in the morning whereas I'm human at night."

And that was proven to be true. The sun began to set behind the mountains, and it slowly turned to twilight. As that moment, the twins pulsated. Inuyasha's hair gradually turned to black while Inumaru's hair turned to white. It was as if they were swapping powers.

When Inuyasha had turned completely human, he was kicked off by Inumaru, who saw the perfect opportunity to escape. Inumaru picked up his chained-sickle and pointed it at the group, clearly threatening to kill them if they came any closer. He was now Inuyasha's half demon version, but he had a few exceptions. His left eye was gone, and his hair was very uneven. Though it wasn't those features that easily distinguished him from Inuyasha. No, there was something more obvious than that.

His eye was as bright and as blue as the sky.

Inumaru's condition didn't look so good even as a half demon, though. He was frail and skinny, as if he hadn't eaten much in many days. He even had bags underneath his eye. Inumaru backed away, his hand not moving away from the gang. The sleeve was pushed back a bit, revealing his right arm to have terrible scars on them. It was as if his arm was badly damaged by something sharp.

Without a word, Inumaru ran off with hood put back on and ran, leaping onto the rooftops and disappearing before anyone had a chance to say anything. Inuyasha and his friends put themselves at ease. "Was that really your brother?" Shippo asked, still a bit shaken up.

"Undoubtedly." came the answer. "And for all we know, we'll never see him again."

The gang was silent, and Sango broke the silence by asking "Why have you never told us about him? And why are you two not together?"

Inuyasha looked upset. "He and I don't have really good history." he said. "Many years ago, when we were ten years old, Inumaru willingly gave himself up to a strong demon that had been terrifying the land to save my mother and I. We never saw him since, until many years later. Inumaru and I reunited again, but he wasn't as nice as I knew him to be. His behaviour got even worse when I met Kikyo. He was devastated. And a few years later, I was sealed to the tree. I don't even know what happened to him then."

His upset look turned to that of a remorseful one. "If I hadn't neglected him for Kikyo, I could have made him a better person."

He walked back into the village after he had said that, leaving his friends feeling sad for him. Kagome approached Inuyasha and put her hand on Inuyasha's shoulder, smiling softly. "It's not your fault, Inuyasha." she reassured, "I'm sure if we find him, we can help to change him."

Inuyasha looked at Kagome with a blank expression. "Thank you for those word," he said, "But I don't think we'll ever see him again.

Inuyasha was most likely right about never seeing Inumaru again after that. Three days passed since Inumaru left them to go on his own. There were no signs of his whereabouts, and no one knows if he died or still lives. They were afraid that he has died, but they were wrong.

"A silver haired boy passed by?"

Inuyasha cracked open an eye and glanced down from his branch high above. A villager. "Yes," the villager said, "he passed by just three days ago. Threatened my village and stole goods from us, that no good scum!"

Inuyasha leapt from his branch and gracefully landed behind the villager. "Did he look something like me?" he asked. The villager turned his head and screamed, running off while yelling "It's him again!" They watched in silence as the man disappeared into the forest. They took it as an obvious yes.

"He may be right about Inumaru passing by." Inuyasha got on all fours and sniffed around. Inumaru's scent was faint, but he definitely passed by. The scent went on for miles, and it seemed like Inumaru went through a path of violence. There was the smell of blood along the path and they would even come across the dead bodies of bandits with their loot ransacked. At the end of their search, they ended up with a puddle of dried blood staining the green grass. Inuyasha feared the worst, for it was Inumaru's blood.

"Do you think something happened to him?" Kagome inquired when they were told the news. Inuyasha showed a grim face. It was for sure that something bad happened to his brother, but what could it be? Did he get kidnapped by humans or something? That's absurd, he thought. Inumaru was more careful than that.

Inuyasha made it his decision to find Inumaru. After requesting his friends to stay in one place and rest up,—they were tired after the long walk—Inuyasha followed the trail of blood to find Inumaru.

The trail lead him deep into the forest, where the blood began to gather in bigger splotches. The damn guy didn't even bother to stop and heal. Inuyasha could smell other demons in the area. They were clearly attracted by the scent of blood, knowing there was easy prey for them.

Realization hit Inuyasha like a truck. If Inumaru was injured so badly that he bled out like this, it means he can't fight. And if he can't fight, he'll die and get eaten.

Inuyasha dashed through the bushes, running along the bloody trail. Inumaru has never been a rational person, always choosing to fight rather than rest. But he couldn't blame Inumaru; even he himself would put up a fight while hurt.

There was a short but clear cry of pain. Even more of Inumaru's blood wafted through the air. A dangerous amount at that.

Inuyasha took a shortcut, cutting through the bushes by leaping among the trees. He passed a bloody stream, where Inumaru ran by and fell in. The trail continued on, and reached his destination rather quickly, and came to a bloody scene.

Inumaru was barely holding on. He has attracted not one, but many demons to his hideout. He did not fight back, but instead ran in a desperate attempt to avoid whatever assaults that came at him. The tactic worked, but not so much as he would like it. The loss of blood was making him weaker by the second, and running only opened them further.

Eventually, Inumaru collapsed from the lack of blood. There was no way he could run. The demons laughed at him, mocking his demise. Inumaru dragged himself across, refusing to give up still. But when he was picked up by a demon, it was pretty much useless for him to struggle.

"So persistent." the demon chortled, "Already at death's door, yet still fighting. You'll make a nice meal." The demon examined Inumaru's frail body. Disappointment wash over him. "Though you don't seem to be a juicy one..."

"Hey, tear him into shreds already! I'm hungry!" The demons began to clamour, eager to have a meal no matter how small, as long as they get to eat.

Inumaru tried to escape still. He wriggled and squirm, but the grasp on him was tight. Baring his fangs, he bit into the demon's hand, but it only stung the predator. His attempts were laughed at. A pathetic attempt to escape.

"You unhand Inumaru right this instant!"

There was bloodshed, dyeing the greenery in red. Inuyasha emerged with Tetsusaiga in hand, killing half of the demons in the area. His sudden appearance shocked everyone, including Inumaru. Inuyasha swung the sword around, threatening to kill them if they don't release Inumaru.

His actions were laughed at, like how they laughed at Inumaru. Demons approach, finding Inuyasha perfect for a second meal. Inuyasha scowled and slain more demons to show he wasn't kidding around. Bodies dropped to the dirt, and the only demon left standing was the one that held Inumaru captive.

Inuyasha pointed the tip of Tetsusaiga at the demon. There was blood dripping down from Tetsusaiga's tip. A lot of it. "Release him." His voice held poison. Anger.

At once the demon dropped the weak half demon and backed off. He pleaded for his life, falling to his knees and begging. Inuyasha decided to show some mercy, and sheathed his sword. But the moment he approached Inumaru, the demon lunged.

He was reduced to nothing more but a pile of flesh. Inumaru's claws shimmered with fresh blood of his former assailant. He may be weak, but he can kill.

Legs wobbling and body shaking, Inumaru fell to his knees and sat, breathing heavily. "You... you came for me." From the corner of his eye, he could see Inuyasha's expression. "Spare me the sentimental look."

"I was worried," Inuyasha said, "All the blood. All the demons in the area. I was afraid you had... died."

Inumaru scoffed. He thought that it was absurd that someone would worry about him.

"Don't give me that look!" Inuyasha demanded, "I'm serious! I was concerned about you!"

Inumaru scoffed again, clicking his tongue, face as emotionless as Inuyasha remembered. "You? You were worried? About little ol' me? A pathetic being such as myself?" His chuckled, not in happiness, but in mockery. "Spare yourself the jokes, Inuyasha. Nobody loves something as pathetic as me. Now go find your friends. You have them, right? I'm sure they are very worried about you."

Inumaru undressed himself and rolled up the kosode he wore, making sure it has no visible holes. The wound stung and burned like fire as Inumaru wrapped it up, wincing as he did so. The ripped kosode was loose. Inumaru did not put so much effort into it.

After a long silence of watching Inumaru wrap up his injuries, Inuyasha finally spoke up with a sigh. "Aren't you gonna heal yourself?"

Inumaru gave Inuyasha a mean look. "I can't heal myself at the moment. I'm too tired to do so."

Inumaru coughed loudly. His throat felt so scratchy. Inuyasha was worried and placed a hand over Inumaru's forehead. A high fever. Was Inumaru sick?

Inumaru slapped Inuyasha's hand away and stood, knees shaking. "I'll be taking my leave." Even his voice sounded weak. Inuyasha stood rapidly and swiftly caught Inumaru before he hit the ground. Inumaru's breathing had gotten quite harsh, leaving him panting instead. He wasn't in the best condition at the moment.

"Don't leave yet and have some rest instead!"

Inumaru refused with a shake of his head. "I'm... fine..." he claimed, pushing his body up again. "I... I am... fine..."

His body gave away. He could no longer keep awake nor support himself. He went limp in Inuyasha's hands, eyelid shutting.

'He's burning up.' Inuyasha slung Inumaru's arms over his shoulder and supported his brother, bringing him back to where his friends waited. He never realized how lightweight Inumaru was. A dangerous condition to be in.

'Kagome will heal him,' Inuyasha thought, 'She's a good person. She'll definitely help him.'


	2. Here Again, And Again, I Leave

~Here Again, And Again, I Leave~

She was nervous. Feet tapping on the dirt anxiously and hands clasped together in hope. Inuyasha has yet to return, and night was falling on them. His search for Inumaru was taking him a long time. "I hope he's alright..." she prayed under her breath.

"Inuyasha is strong." Miroku reassured, "He will get out of whatever predicament he got into. That's who Inuyasha is."

Kirara turned her head and mewed, twin tails swinging back and forth and head tilted. Her calls signalled Inuyasha's return as Inuyasha emerged from the forest with Inumaru on his back. Inumaru was quickly taken and put under a shady tree, where Kagome will tend to his wounds.

"He has a high fever..." Kagome's mutter was barely heard by her friends. She was worried. She made quick work with the bandages and scissors, applying antiseptic and wrapping up the wounds as best as she could.

Inumaru snapped awake to a pain in his side and immediately lashed out at who he thought was assaulting him, jumping to his feet as he did so. If Miroku hadn't pulled Kagome back, she would be in shreds.

There were many emotions surging through Inumaru's face. Pain, confusion, fear, and anger. He stumbled backwards and tripped over air, falling flat on his back and knocking head first onto the dirt, blacking out. Inuyasha picked up his brother and brought him back to the cool and shady tree. They must bring him back to the village for treatment.

xXxX

"Poor guy." Sango commented, sad eyes looking at Inumaru. Kaede placed a cool and damp cloth on the half demon's forehead and checked the stew she was currently making for the sick half demon. They had brought him back to the village and treated him with medicine and changed the bandages.

"He was quite fierce when we met him." Shippo stated. Inuyasha sighed and nodded his head, scratching the back of it as he did. "So what do you propose I do?" Inuyasha asked, irritated. It infuriated him further when an annoying pain stung his cheeks, prompting him to smack whatever bit him.

Not surprisingly, it was Myoga, as flat as a pancake. "What do you want?" he inquired, dusting Myoga off his palm. Myoga popped back into shape mid air and leapt onto Inuyasha's rosary beads. I'm surprised you and your brother met once again, master Inuyasha!" he said in bewilderment.

Inuyasha glowered at Myoga. "Was that all?" he growled. Myoga squeaked and shook his head and stumpy hands. "G-give me a break!" he shouted anxiously, "I'd over heard news of Master Inumaru's finding, and I simply came here to visit!"

"Too bad." Inuyasha dropped Myoga, crossing his arms with a huff, "He's asleep."

"Nghn..."

The groan that escaped from Inumaru's lips caught everyone's attention.

"Hgn... agh..."

'Is he dreaming?' Inuyasha watched in wonder as Inumaru made many faces, but there were no happy ones. Inumaru was having nightmares, that's for sure. Inuyasha sighed as he removed the damp cloth to replace it with another one. Before he did so, he leaned in and looked closely, searching for any symptoms of a sickness.

Suddenly, there was a scream. Inumaru snapped awake and head butted Inuyasha, hurting both he and his brother. Inuyasha's friends exclaimed in surprise while Inuyasha exclaimed in pain and fell back. He groaned as he rubbed his sore forehead. He should have seen it coming.

He pushed himself up and upon seeing a monk and a demon slayer, he backed away from the group. "Stay away! Don't touch me! I don't want anyone to come near me!" Inuyasha went over and reached for Inumaru, but he was rejected. "I said don't touch me!" Inumaru hollered, slapping Inuyasha's hand away. "I don't want any business with a monk nor a demon slayer!"

Miroku and Sango exchanged glances. It wasn't as if they could do anything about it. "I can assure you Miroku and Sango are good people." Inuyasha said.

Inumaru answered with a scowled and looked down to see himself fully dressed. His whole face went red. "Y-you ch-cha-changed my c-c-c-CLOTHES?!"

He was furious. No, that was an understatement. He was enraged beyond belief when he learnt that they changed his clothes. They saw him naked, and they must have saw the scars under his body, too. He screamed, but nothing came out. It was a dry voice instead.

"You have a cold." Kaede pointed out, "You must not scream or move so much and try to recover first."

Inumaru spoke up, but he was cut was mid-sentence as he let out a sneeze. His sneezes were loud. Despite his constant sneezing, he retorted with "I'm not sick!"

Kaede stood up and calmly walked over to Inumaru, who backed away from her. Inumaru sneezed a couple more times, making him stumble back. When he was done, Kaede touched his nose. "Dry nose means you're sick." she said firmly.

"I'm not sick!" Inumaru was still in denial. He wobbled and was caught by Miroku before he fell. He sneezed a couple more times, coughing as he did. He groaned and leaned forward, covering his face in discomfort. His stomach rumbled audibly.

"Kagome, could you get the soup for him to eat?"

Inumaru heard Inuyasha's request. Surely the weirdly dressed girl won't ever take the request. Inuyasha's requested, however, was nicely accepted. Kagome opened up the finished pot of stew and the smell made Inumaru even more hungry. She scooped out a serving and put it down.

Sango brought it to the malnourished boy to eat, but Inumaru made no move. She figured that Inumaru was tired, so she tried to feed him. But Inumaru was rejecting the food by turning away his head and pushing away Sango's hand. "Not hungry." Inumaru said untruthfully.

"Come on, your stomach just growled." Inuyasha sighed, getting annoyed with Inumaru's constant rejections and denials. Inumaru shook his head again and headed out the door, seemingly trying to run. But not three steps later, he fell flat on his face. Inuyasha had a look that showed annoyance, but he did not let it get to him. Inumaru has a cold and a fever.

Inumaru could feel his whole body aching. His stuffy nose was unpleasant enough to top up with his headache, and the body pains only made it worse. He pushed himself on all fours and started coughing, clearing his throat as he did so. Even when Kagome offered a bottle of water to him, Inumaru rejected it as well.

Everyone was worried for him. Inumaru was tired, dizzy, hungry, and confused. He had a cold before, and he never liked it. It was mostly thanks to making medicine did he actually cure himself.

Inuyasha carried Inumaru back to the futon and laid him there. Normally, he would drag, but doing this will just piss Inumaru kff. Miroku put another cool cloth on Inumaru's forehead.

"Hey, I know you're sick and upset, but is there anything we can do for you?" Inuyasha asked. Inumaru groaned and did not respond.

"Do you want us to leave you two be?" Miroku suggested. Inuyasha nodded. It was for the best. And so they left the hut without any hesitancy, leaving only Inuyasha and Inumaru left.

Inuyasha heard Inumaru's stomach rumble again. With a sigh, he picked up the warm bowl and stirred with a spoon, scooping some out and bringing it to Inumaru's mouth as he did so.

Inumaru retaliated by spitting in the bowl.

Inuyasha sighed again, frustrated. Was Inumaru really going to keep doing this? He certainly hadn't changed at all. Giving up, he put the bowl to one side and tested Inumaru's temperature. He switched out the cloth and replaced it with a new one. Inumaru contemplated for awhile, and finally decided to ask Inuyasha a question.

"Did you ever think about me?"

Inuyasha paused and looked at his brother with a questioning look. It took him awhile to process the question, but when he eventually got it he turned back. "I always did."

"Even when you were with Kikyo?"

Inuyasha hesitated to answer. Yes, he did think about Inumaru when he was with Kikyo. How could he not? The fierce looks Inumaru casted at them were hard to ignore. Inumaru always followed them around, hiding in the shadows. Inuyasha always knew that he was there.

"Of course." Inuyasha finally replied. Inumaru was doubtful. Inuyasha had hesitated to answer the question, but he shoved it to one side and replied with a wistful "Oh."

It only made Inuyasha feel guilt. Inumaru was clearly upset at him, but what could he do to make up to his brother? The atmosphere became tense and dark with Inumaru's gloomy aura. A question roamed Inuyasha's head, a question that he hesitated to ask. Inumaru hated himself, so what was giving him the will to continue living on? What gave him this perseverance that allows him to move forward?

"You're speaking aloud."

Inuyasha snapped from his trance and turned to his brother so fast he almost broke his neck. "Huh?"

Inumaru was irritated by that babble that came out from Inuyasha's mouth. "You said everything aloud-" He coughed and shifted his position-"Something about why I keep moving on, what gives me the determination."

There was a small silence between the two. "Well, yes." Inuyasha said as he sighed. "If you know what my question is, could you tell me?"

Inumaru's eye darted around the room, ears perked up to listen for any movement outside. When there was none, he answered. "Just the sheer will of seeing you again, free from the seal . You know, I've always thought about killing myself so many times, to end my life right there. But I didn't. The thought of seeing you, and connecting again was what kept me going."

The answer was unexpected. Inuyasha always thought Inumaru had sheer willpower to continue, yet Inumaru had been waiting for 50 years just to see him again. But here he was, seeing him with another girl that resembled Kikyo.

There was an awkward silence. A groan escaped Inumaru's lips. His headache was killing him. He already had a migraine to begin with, but the flu is just making it worse. He heard someone approaching and assumed it was Inuyasha.

In his pounding head, Inumaru could hear words being exchanged. There was someone else in the room, but he did not know who. He felt someone pick him up and cradle him. He didn't know who it was. He was too tired to actually open his eyes to see. He could feel a gentle hand stroke his messy, tangled hair, combing through it lovingly. The fingers moved to his ears and stroked them. A nice tingly sensation ran down his spine.

The hands were so soft and so warm, that he subconsciously nuzzled it. He loved the feeling. It was something he had never felt. Who would touch him in this pathetic state? Inumaru opened his eye. The hand was a feminine one and the voice was of a female's. He saw a white sleeve with green cuffs, and it didn't take him long to realize it was Kagome that was petting him. Instantly his heart jumped and he wanted to move away, but he couldn't do anything. He was too weak. So instead he growled, causing Kagome to pause her actions.

"It's okay," Kagome soothed, "I won't hurt you."

Inumaru felt himself getting sleepier. He needed rest, but he rejected it. Kagome's voice was soothing, and it only made him even more drowsy. Despite his effort to keep himself awake, he eventually feel into deep sleep, putting his mind at ease for the time being.

xXxX

One blue eye shot open in the dark as Inumaru rose suddenly. He held himself, trembling in fear. "A nightmare?" he whispered, eye scanning the room. Only Inuyasha and Kagome were in the room, sleeping with him to keep him company. Inumaru felt a bit better. His fever had gone down. His half demon body was doing its work.

It didn't matter, he told himself. Now that he was all better, he can leave this place. He will go far, far away where Inuyasha cannot find him. So he stood and headed for the door. His knees were still shaky, but he can manage.

'Kill the girl.'

Inumaru stopped dead in his tracks. His eye turned to Kagome, who was asleep. She reminded him of Kikyo. The woman who stole Inuyasha away from his life. The girl who sealed Inuyasha to a tree, leaving him alone for 50 years.

' ** _Kill her. She will steal away our brother again. We cannot have that happen._** '

Adrenaline pumped through his veins. He was telling him to make sure this woman never takes Inuyasha away from him. His eye filled with a deadly look. Slowly and steadily, he walked over to Kagome without making a sound. "She looks so pure..." Inumaru's eye gleam with murderous intent, narrowing dangerously. "So innocent, so quiet, so peaceful. Just like that damn bitch."

Inumaru drew his claw across Kagome's neck, but he did not touch her. He was hesitant.

" ** _Why stop me, Inumaru?_** "

He made another move, but he simply couldn't touch her. How nice it would be to strangle her, to cut open her neck and watch as she bleeds to death.

'No. I cannot bear to see Inuyasha's sorrow.'

The compassionate light in his eye returned. This girl did nothing wrong to him. She soothed him, helped him to sleep, and it would be crude of him to kill her. So he left her alone, but something made him stop.

"Stop that! It hurts!"

' ** _Why aren't you killing her?!_** '

"I cannot do it! She did nothing wrong to us!"

' ** _Are you not afraid she'll take Inuyasha away?!_** '

"So let her! If that's what fate wants, then so be it! This is my body, Akuhei! We came to an agreement!"

' ** _... For now. When I take over, you can't expect me to keep her alive._** '

A maniacal cackle ran through his head, and the voice was gone. Inumaru shook his head to clear the cloudy thoughts in his mind. He didn't know how he felt.

"Hey, are you okay?" Inumaru's head whipped to Inuyasha, who was awake. "Y-yeah." he replied, though it was obvious he wasn't okay. He could hear Inuyasha shift. The feeling of a pair of eyes was on his back.

"If there's anything you need," Inuyasha groaned sleepily, lying back down again, "Wake me."

Inumaru hummed, nodding. He turned to Inuyasha, watching his chest heave slower with each breath. Once he was sure that Inuyasha was asleep, he got up again, brushing his hair back. He was silent as he walked out the door, not bothering to look back at them.


End file.
